Two large families--complete with middle-aged boozers, noisy children, servants and pets--spend a torpid summer together in a faded resort town in Northwest Argentina. The swimming pool is filthy, broken glass litters the deck--from one drink too many, sullen teenagers abound, and the lush vegetation surrounding the house looks as though it's about to make its move. Soon the crowded, rough-and-tumble domestic situation strains everyone's nerves; repressed family mysteries are exposed and the tensions laid bare by the long, hot summer threaten to erupt into violence.